


I believe that we’re meant to be but jealousy gets the best of me

by JellyfishBomb



Category: Banana Bus Squad
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Violence, Delirious and Cartoonz is the best brotp, Drama & Romance, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Established Friendship, Explicit Language, Friendship/Love, Gen, I can do angst scenes but I do not execute them well in its in a fic, M/M, Oneshot, hanahaki disease au, i tried doing angst, mentions of torture, not accurate information, ohmtoonz, rainbow six seige AU, uhh im pretty sure there is angst??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-08
Updated: 2017-09-08
Packaged: 2018-12-25 02:04:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 21,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12025785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JellyfishBomb/pseuds/JellyfishBomb
Summary: Luke’s fingers are coated with fresh blood once the coughing fit was over, it was hard to breathe but the pain finally subsided. He gasps for breath as he stares down at a flower with its petals slightly intact despite going up his throat. Several petals had come loose but the flower still blooms beautifully in the palm of his hand.The Hanahaki Disease is an illness born from one-sided love, where the patient throws up and coughs up flower petals when they suffer from one-sided love. In order to fully recover from the disease, one’s love must be fulfilled or have it surgically removed at the cost of losing those feelings forever.Luke is not immune to this.





	I believe that we’re meant to be but jealousy gets the best of me

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to do an Ohmtoonz Hanahaki disease and if it means I have to make it then so be it. There is a lot of Rainbow six siege element to this since I used that as my story setting. I'll probably create a long r6 AU story that includes these nerds but who knows.
> 
> The title of the story is inspired by Halsey. I was listening to her song while writing this.

The air is cold and still. With the absence of the cold winds and animals, the silence in the snowy terrain is deafening. The slightest shifts in the air unnerves him even though his eyes scanned the terrain through the darkness multiple times for any signs of life.

His warm breathes could be seen dancing and twirling before his face at every exhale he made. His neck scarf is pulled down to his lower lip, exposing his reddening nose and upper lip to the cold weather. The numbness had become a dull throb, reminding Luke the dangers of frostbite when his skin gets too cold.

His attention remains unwavering despite the aches on his back and knees, with his finger on the trigger and one eye looking through the scope. His crosshairs remain locked on the cottage down below the hill he is perched on with the dot cross hair placed directly on the window to a dark room.

_Inhale._

He sees movement in the room. It’s still too dark for him to see who lurks in the darkness but he lines up his shot, finger curled around the trigger. The slightest pull will set the gun off.

_Exhale._

More movement. The room lights up and he finally sees two individuals in the room with one being thrown to the ground roughly whereas the other hurriedly barricaded the door and strode over to snarl at the fallen man. Luke can tell the other is furious, his shoulders are stiff and his entire demeanour radiates anger. Through his powerful scope, Luke recognizes his target and the other an obstacle standing in his way, a threat that he need to eliminate before his team makes a move.

_Inhale._

The threat takes position behind the target, using the petrified man as a meat shield, probably his last line of defence. Luke frowns under his scarf as he trains his crosshair over to the militant taking shelter behind the target, oblivious to his imminent death by a bullet to the head when he left his back unguarded.

The finger on the trigger curls and everything around him melts away to nothingness. He does not feel the cold of winter or hears the silence around him. He only sees the threat under his cross hair and hears only his own slowing heartbeat.

_Exhale._

He pulls the trigger-

“Hey.”

Luke opens his closed eyes and turns to see Ryan standing not far from him with two beer cans in hand. The man realizes the ringing in his ears is from a non-existent rifle setting off and that he is no longer in the cold wilderness where the snow had covered him from head to toe as he lies on his stomach for long hours, unmoving in his position like a frozen statue.

Ryan shifts on the spot, unnerved by Luke’s silence as the other man stared at him through his dark hair that fell into his eye. His gaze is burning despite using one eye to stare at him which reminded Ryan of his slight annoyance towards his captain when he had been inducted into the team. It was only later on does he learn that Luke had two functioning eyes but the man preferred to keep his right eye closed, where his large scar decorates his face.

A habit, the man explains, which developed when his eye was healing and was too much of a hassle to stop when the bandages were removed. Walking around with one eye did not hinder the man but he did use both eyes when shooting or on missions.

Shame gnaws Ryan’s mind when his past actions came to mind, how it was childish of him to disobey direct orders just because he didn’t like him personally. He remembered being smug, smirking when Luke confronted him after the mission which luckily had went well. He remembers them shouting and then a fight broke out. In the end, Luke manage to pin him to the ground with his superior skills in close combat training, both of them on the floor beaten, bloodied and bruised. It was then he learns of something of Luke, why the man had been cold for his actions.

Ryan remembers anger in Luke’s gaze, burning uncontrollably but he sees something as well that stops him in his tracks for a moment – he sees regret.

Both men bleeding and aching on the floor of the barracks, they had come to an understanding of one another and the hostility between them was gone, replaced by friendly teasing.

The captain takes a long drag from his burning cigarette that hangs between his fingers, tapping once to shake off the ashes that hung on. The air is thick with the smell of smoke and Ryan was certain that the others can smell it on Luke’s clothes when he returns to the group after wondering off into the night.

He looks at Luke seeing that the man is dressed up for the cold weather from head to toe. Winter is at its peak and he sees a light fall of snow which falls upon them. Some land on Luke head but he does not pay mind to it as he looks at him.

A small smirk appears on Luke’s lips as he looks at Ryan, “Hey yourself soldier.”

“Hiding the good stuff, huh?” Ryan nods to the lit cigarette as he walks over to sit by Luke’s side. Some items are not permitted on the grounds such as alcohol and amongst other things but there were some exceptions like holidays where they are allowed to take one of the jeeps and drive to town to pick up extra supplies.

Today was a holiday, most of the men returned home to see families and only a few of them stayed on base. Those who remained threw a small party with cheap alcohol and a good barbeque. Ryan was able to snatch a few cans of beer for him and the captain, feeling that the other might feel upset if all the drinks were gone during his absence.

The captain made room for the other, even jokingly dusting his seat for Ryan as if he was high nobility. Ryan snorted, thrusting Luke’s drink into his hands as he settles by his side. The other takes it, mumbling his thanks and passes his cigarette back in return.

The SPETSNAZ operator looks at it for a moment, before taking a long drag and feels his lungs burn. He blows a long streak of smoke into the air as Luke opens his drink with a sharp click. None of them said a word, feeling some semblance of peace in the silence between them.

In the distance, they hear a man whoop out in joy followed by disappointed groans.

Luke breaks the silence with a low chuckle and looks at the direction of the mass hall. “Must be a hell of a party.”

Ryan turns to look at his captain then follows his gaze. “It is,” he agreed, “You left kind of early.”

“I had a call to make,” Luke replied, taking a sip from his cold beer.

“Family?” Ryan ask, curious about his captain’s background if the man would gladly offer his life story. He knows little, just titbits of information shared from older members of the squadron; that he used to live in North Carolina and that he knows two members of the squadron outside of the military.

Jonathan ‘Delirious’ and Mark ‘Gorillaphent’ are the only knows that are close to Luke and were vague with their stories when it comes to diving into personal background like two friends knowing an inside secret. Luke does the same when he gets wrapped up into the conversation, shooting knowing looks to the two before walking away when he could no longer ignore his duties as squadron Captain.

It tempts Ryan to pry but he stops knowing how it feels when his privacy is being violated.

The captain shakes his head, “From the General. He wanted to congratulate us for our latest mission in Puerto Cruz. He sounds happy for once since he usually screams or just goes straight to the point if I caught him in a good mood.”

“Oh.” Was all Ryan could say because the General is never seen much around the base. He only remembers an old man with a permanent scowl on his face as the older man is flanked by two of Ryan’s former superiors which made all the men in his group fall in line and salute when the man enters the barracks. The old man scanned the room and directly makes a beeline to him with an offer he could not refuse.

“Why are you here?” Luke asked, disrupting Ryan’s train of thought.

Ryan shrugs his shoulders, “Needed a break.” He says then grins, “Also to keep your lonely ass from being lonely. You had the good stuff!”

He lifts up the lit cigarettes pinched between his finger and thumb to emphasize his last point.

Luke snorts into his drink and playfully knocks his shoulder into Ryan’s just as the man takes a sip of his drink.  He sputters, coughing a bit having snorted beer up his nose by accident before shooting a nasty look to the other man who only batted his eyelash innocently as if he is innocent but his smile is mischievous and playful. Once more they fell back into silence where in the distance they can hear their friends enjoy the night.

“So- “Ryan began hoping to break the ice with small talk but Luke interjected before he continued.

“You know I hate small talk.” The Captain turns to Ryan with a hand out, pointing to the cigarette so he could take a long drag.

“I do.” Ryan answered, “But I feel that we need something to break the ice. Talk about something besides missions. Tell me yours and I’ll tell you mine.”

The former SEAL operative stares, internally debating on the pros and cons to this conversation but decides to open his big fat mouth. “Alright.”

He leans back on his seat, using his office building to support his back as he sits on top of an empty crate that had been left outside. He had meant to get that crate removed long ago but it simply slipped out of his mind when missions began to pour through.

The dark sky is beautiful in camp being located far from the city where the lights from the buildings don’t outshine the natural light of a distant star. As Luke gaze up to the sky, it reminds him a little of his past where he and Delirious would drag a beaten-out tent outside to the backyard to star gaze through a telescope they both had manage to pitch in and buy in a garage sale. It felt nice to remove himself, even for just a little bit, to just enjoy the smallest things.

“On nights like this, Delirious and I would stargaze.” Luke begins, “And each time, we try to figure out the constellations of the stars. Try to test one another if we can figure out whose story and stars belongs to who and at the same time we learned a little bit more of space. As cliché as it is, we didn’t like staying indoors but the outdoors.”

Ryan imagines two boys running out of a house despite the pouring rain just to play in the puddles. The image in his head somehow fits them. He imagines slightly chubby boys where Luke’s sharp jawline is more round because of baby fat, his beard is gone and the scar didn’t exist.

“I guess I’m the complete opposite.” Ryan said with a small smile on his face as he turns his gaze from the stars in heaven to his drink in hand, “I hated the outdoors as a child. You get dirty and hurt, and at that time it wasn’t appealing to younger me. I preferred puzzles over sticks and stones.”

Curiosity peaked, Luke prodded further. “What made you change your mind about the outdoors?”

“I went out.” The trap specialist answers in a serious tone.

They stared at one another for a moment before Ryan burst out laughing, slapping a hand over his knee while Luke sat there in confusion. It took a moment but it finally clicked in his Luke’s mind why the man is laughing and shoves at him. “You dick!”

It only made Ryan laugh harder, giggling and wheezing to the point that it’s contagious and Luke can’t help himself form joining in the laughter as well, forgetting about everything but now. The distant laughs coming from the mess hall faded from their minds, the heavy dark thought lingering in the back of their minds _that death is near its part of their job description_ vanished for a moment.

It was only them and their laughter.

“I-I can’t breathe!” Ryan wheezes, doubling forward to hold his stomach while he struggles to hold his drink up right, “H-hold my beer!”

Luke obligated after stuffing his cigarette into his mouth using his teeth to hold it in place as he grabs Ryan’s drink to prevent the man from spilling his drink furthermore. The man had already spilled some on the snow and it looked like someone had taken a piss on the spot. Ryan continues to laugh for a while, wiping some tears that escape his eyes.

_Green,_ Luke notice with a slight tilt of his head, _they are a nice shade of green_. Ryan always wears a bandana over his eyes during missions which at first made him wonder if Ryan was an idiot but he scrapped that thought away when he realizes he does the same thing with his right eye. It was habit that’s hard to drop and most of those under his command has the same habit, Delirious wears his mask everywhere even if he was forced to take showers with others.

A few such as Mike ‘Sattelizer’ who in his opinion is the most normal in his squadron. He stops his thoughts short. Mike tends to use the radio to flirt with everyone off missions or sing off key to a song. In his mind, Luke strips Mike his title as the ‘normal one’ of the group. The title of normal goes to Bryce.

Too deep into his thoughts, Luke stares absentmindedly at Ryan who mistakes it as something else.

Ryan meets his gaze and smirked, “Take a picture, it last longer.”

Luke scoffs, rolling his eyes to pretend that he wasn’t caught red handed staring at the man who when he smiles, the corner of his eyes crinkle. He says nothing and does not bother to defend himself because it would only make it look incriminating. Knowing Ryan, the man would hold it against him relentlessly.

A soft breeze past them, tussling their hair which shakes off some snowflake that landed on top of their heads. Ryan takes his drink back just as he settles down with his shoulder pressed against Luke as they both stared up at the stars. The weather is cold and the drinks in their hand is much colder making their fingers curled around the drink feel numb but they said nothing. It was just the soft whistle of the wind and the distant cheers of their friends.

“I…” Ryan began, “I got tired of playing the same games over and over again. I got tired of seeing the same walls every day yet I still stayed inside, repeating the same things I loathe until one day. One day, I got a dog. Back then he was a puppy who hid under my porch and was scared to leave until I went under myself. I guess he coaxed me out of my house just as how I coaxed him out from under my porch.”

Luke cast a glance to the side and sees the content look on Ryan’s face. His eyes were half lidded, looking close to being asleep and his cheeks had turned a soft rosy colour due to the cold. The soft smile on his face is different to all his other smiles he shared, this one was more emotional and more private.

He smiles as if everything is right with the world.

The first time he had seen Ryan’s face without paint or his bandana was when he had pinned the man to the floor with a bleeding nose. It was before they found a middle ground back when the hostility between them is thick in the air. His green eyes were filled with anger and something Luke is very familiar with; _Defiance._

He looks at Ryan ‘Ohmwrecker’ and instead of defiance, he sees peace.

Luke chokes on his drink just as his heart leaps up to his throat, threatening to jump out of his body. He muffles the sound by slapping a hand over his mouth, mentally cursing his body for the worst time to act up. He clears his throat several times but the choking feeling does not go away.

The trap specialist laughs, “Pretty dumb, huh?”

“No,” Luke croaks with a lump in his throat, “It’s not.”

Something crashes to the floor, loud enough for Luke and Ryan to jolt in their seat and look towards the mess hall, following the crash they hear panic voices. The Captain wants to groan knowing something expensive broke amidst the chaos of the party and he’ll have to deal with the paperwork of replacing the damage item.

Another crash and the panic voices becomes louder.

“Well,” Ryan says awkwardly, standing up to pat away any dirt that clings to his clothes, “I’m going to check out what’s going on in the mess hall and give them a heads up about your arrival.”

He polishes off his drink in one go before crushing the can in his hand. He looks ready to leave but the man stops for a moment, thinking.

“Merry Christmas, Cartoonz.” Said Ryan softly, flashing a smile before leaving.

Luke wants to return the greeting but he still feels the lump in his throat that refuse to disappear no matter how much he discreetly cleared his throat. He could only watch Ryan walk away with the snow crunching under his feet, leaving a trail of foot prints behind.

He mumbles, too late for Ryan to catch. “…Merry Christmas.”

The lump in his throat turns into a sharp pain, enough for tears to prick his eyes. Instinctively he starts coughing and hacking, to the point it feels like he’s choking. He coughs and coughs and it feels that he can’t breathe. What almost felt like an eternity of agony but was just a minute, Luke feels something wet climb up his throat and enter his mouth. It was not phlegm, he would immediately recognize it if it was, but there is blood and something else.

With a mouthful, he spits the foreign substance to the ground and takes in a sharp breath when he sees it.

In the snow, he sees flower petals stained with blood.

* * *

 

Jonathan peeks his head into the room and spots Luke on his bunk staring up at the ceiling with an unreadable expression on his face. He enters the room, rasping his knuckles against the door frame to alert his presence. He knowns better than to startle his captain and his face throbs at the memory where he had pranked Luke by scaring him. In hindsight, it wasn’t a great idea as it landed in him in the infirmary to set his broken nose while Luke fumes in the corner.

The man shifts his gaze to meets Jonathan’s gaze. He says nothing and the frown on his lips became prominent. Inwardly Jonathan can’t help but wince knowing the disappointment Luke had towards the team once he stumbled on the mess they had made in the mess hall. Ryan was gracious enough to give them a heads up on the captain’s arrival but it didn’t save them from the silent fury that is their captain. They expected an outburst and a lot of screaming but he simply stared at the mess and left without a word.

His silence is more potent than his yelling.

“I can tell something is wrong, Luke.” Jonathan said with a sigh, taking a seat on Luke’s bunk. “If it’s about the cabinet we broke a few hours ago we are really- “

“It’s not about the cabinet.” Luke said.

“-then the paperwork. We’re really sorry- “

“I have it.” Luke said cryptically.

Jonathan paused, confused with his serious tone. All his humour melted away when Luke shifted a bit, bringing up a closed fist to him and unwraps his fingers to reveal crushed flower petals in his hand.

He noticed the dry blood that had crusted over the white petals. He sees a tinge of purple coating the inner part of the petal with its patterns similar to the coat of a cheetah however nearing the fringe of the petal, it remains untouched by the spots and left white instead. His heart sank at the sight and the room became much colder despite it being already at freezing point.

He hesitantly reaches out to touch the flower, stopping short before his fingers brushes the delicate petals to seek approval from Luke who watches him. The man gives a jerky nod and dumps the petals into Jonathan’s hands carelessly, lacking care when he cradles it between his fingers before turning away with a fierce frown on his lips.

“I- “Jonathan began, cupping the petals in his hands but Luke’s sharp tone stops him from speaking further.

“ _Don’t_.” The man snaps, his tone laced with anger. “Just don’t.”

Even with the warning, Jonathan knows better than to take Luke’s words without a second thought. He grew up with the man, considered his childhood friend as a brother when he turned 12 and it remained that way even as they enrolled into the army.

He takes a deep breath, casting one last look to the petals in hand before turning his gaze to Luke with a question on his lips, “Its him, isn’t it?” he said softly.

Luke nearly gave himself a whiplash to look at Jonathan in the eye, ready to deny any accusations thrown at him. He doesn’t feel like he’s in love regardless of the damning evidence being held in Jonathan’s hands. He wants to deny it but the feeling in his chest began to grow uncomfortable and the look in his brother’s eyes shake him to the core.

The fear is instilled within him from a young age and the whispers of the Hanahaki disease now screeches in his ears of the pain and death caused by the unknown illness.

No one has discovered how or when it originated from and evidence shows that the sickness is prominent decades ago before the industrialization period. Any other data that dates back further than that is either inconclusive or an unfortunate victim of time. The sickness is unpredictable and merciless to its victim – no person, old or young are spared however the silver lining to this is that not everyone would suffer from the disease and it can be surgically removed.

However, is it without a price; the love to the person you had will be lost forever.

Luke remembers attending a funeral as a young boy, donning a nice suit as he holds his mother’s hand while they stand during service. He recalled a grey sky with dark clouds hanging over their heads like a foreboding omen. It doesn’t rain but everyone presents at the funeral had an umbrella present. He recalls little of what he did during the funeral but he remembers at the end of it; the pitied whispers shared between adults as the crowd disperse and he sees one person staying behind just as the rain started.

He did not have a chance to see their face, to see what they had felt as the coffin lowers into the ground but just as he was being pulled away, he catches a brief glimpse. In their clenched hand, they held a flower that is not like those for the funeral.

The flowers used for the funeral were white in colour. The flowers they held were red.

It scares him. To think that having unrequited feelings means the death of him. He had grown to accept death on the battlefield and made peace with the fact that one day his luck will run out and he will be one of those that won’t return home, in his stead a flag will be sent.

Dying to a bullet, a knife or to an explosion; he thought of many ways of going out. Never had he thought that his death will be a result on choking up flowers because he had grown feelings towards the man he used to hate.

He suddenly chokes, startling Jonathan when the man doubles over. The sharp pain in his chest returns but this time it feels worse and Luke gets a feeling that it will continue to become worse as time grows.

Jonathan is by his side immediately, rubbing his back in his efforts to sooth the pain as Luke continues to cough and hack. He feels useless as he watches Luke struggle to breathe for air between his harsh coughs, unable to do anything but watch his brother suffer.

Luke’s fingers are coated with fresh blood once the coughing fit was over, it was hard to breathe but the pain finally subsided. He gasps for breath as he stares down at a flower with its petals slightly intact despite going up his throat. Several petals had come loose but the flower still blooms beautifully in the palm of his hand.

“Oh god…” Luke whispered, bloodied hands trembling, “ _Oh god_.”

The feeling of uselessness returns tenfold and Jonathan can’t do anything but watch as a trail of blood drip down Luke’s chin. There is horror in his eyes and a flower in his hand.

The image haunts him as night turns to day.

* * *

 

Luke manage to hide the petals he coughs up during the day when it’s time to train with ohm but day by day his waste basket begins to fill up to the brim with bloodied petals, the amount growing larger and larger. He was able to lie though his teeth when questioned, that it was a just a simple cough because of his smoking habits. He was able to fool everyone on the base even his own medical officer.

Jonathan who would give him sad looks when he catches him and Ryan together, in the briefing room or on the shooting range. He says nothing during those times of weakness but the look in his gaze says it all as Luke has to leave to cough up more petals.

Luke drops his pen to massage his wrist, feeling it ache after reading and signing paperwork for hours none stop. He leans against his chair and scans the table, noting that he is close to completing most of his work. Just as he was about to return to complete one last pile left, a knock on his door stops him.

“Come in,” he says as he picks his pen and resumes writing. He only looks up from his work when the door opens to reveal Mark as his guest. The large man says nothing as he walks into Luke’s office with a blue plastic bag in hand. He shoots the item a questionable look, curious to why his friend and head medical officer would carry it around.

“Hey- “Luke greets but is cut short when his friend threw the bag on his paperwork. He shoots the item an irritated look, slightly confused with its use in the conversation before looking up at his friend. There is no humour, no smile on the doctor’s face but a fierce frown.

“Explain.” Mark demanded.

Luke leans back in his chair, crossing his arms as he regarded the man with a look. “Explain what?” he questioned.

His friend remains silent, allowing his actions to speak for him as he leans forward to rips into the plastic bag on the table, showing enough to the captain who couldn’t bear to stare at the plastic bag filled with flowers he had coughed up over the week. Luke feels phantom petals climbing up his throat at the sight.

Mark slams his hands on the table and snarls, “ ** _How long?_** ”

“Jesus…” Luke runs a hand through his hair, “Did Delirious put you up to this?”

The angry look on Mark’s face twist into confusion, “What? He knew??” he shakes his head, “No! I found out myself after doing a little digging.”

“So, you went dumpster diving?”

Luke tries to change the subject because he didn’t want to see the flowers. He didn’t want to be reminded of the restless nights where he thinks of _him_ and coughs till his hands are drenched in blood and petals.

“Luke, I’m being serious right now. I didn’t push on the matter because I might be wrong on the symptoms so I did a little digging just to confirm and its worse than I thought. I’m not going to ask again; _How long_?”

The captain runs a hand over his face, instinctively covering his mouth with his hand. “Since Christmas.” He finally answers.

Mark stares at him, baffled. “ **Christmas?**! Jesus! And you kept quiet on it rather than see me?”

“Not here,” Luke says lowly, popping a cap over his pen and grabs the plastic bag which he then stuffs into his pocket. Mark sputters angrily having his question be obviously deflected but fell silent when Luke leans forward, whispering under his breath. His eyes dart to the door where someone is likely to be standing behind. He could not trust anyone else with his condition and he cannot afford to be compromised now. “Too many ears.”

Mark breathes heavily through his nose, reluctant to drop the topic that quickly if it was to escape the conversation on Luke’s part but knows to follow orders. He steps aside with a suspicious look on his face, allowing Luke to access the door.

Luke’s secretary jumps on the spot, caught red-handed leaning close to the door when their conversation turns into shouting. The man grins sheepishly while Luke stares back with a blank expression, clearly not finding the humour in the situation. Behind Luke, Mark could only shake his head.

The man tries to save himself but ends up digging a deeper grave, “S-sir I- “

“A hundred laps around base, soldier. Falter or miscount it, add twenty more. I’ll have someone keep an eye out of you just to be sure,” Luke barks then shouts down the hallway, “Flitch!!”

A soldier pops his head out of a room, “Yeah?” he answers back as casual as he can, hiding the fact he is fearful to have Luke’s wrath invoked upon him at a wrong move on his part.

“Oversee that this _fine gentleman_ over here does a hundred laps around base. Feel free to add twenty more if he falters or miscount. If I ever find out that you both lie to me and _I_ will know, there is two perfectly good and clean toothbrushes with both your names on it and guess who is going to clean the men’s bathroom for two months?”

Flitch replies, “U-us, sir.”

Luke nods then shoots a pointed look at his secretary, “Get on it.”

The man practically scrambles to meet Flitch, wanting to put distance between himself and his enraged captain. He sputters apologies as he and Flitch jog towards the entrance, dropping off paperwork they held to someone else. Bystanders who heard the commotion can only spare them pitying looks as they pass before leaving sight. They immediately return to their task when Luke issues a sharp order to return to work.

Luke swept his eyes over his intel team a final time, making sure that everything is in order before turning to face Mark, “Over here.”

He leads Mark over to his room which is located at the other side of the building. Luke is one of a few that has their own room to sleep in which does not require them to share it with five others. Rarely does Luke use his room as his duties of captain kept him away from sleeping in a normal bed. Most of the time he slept in his office on a beaten-up couch that’s pushed against the wall. Although he wakes up with a sore neck, he gets enough rest to remain functional before returning to his task.

Luke looks down both hallways, making sure the coast is clear before locking the door behind him.

“I can’t afford to get you distracted.” Luke admits, pulling out the plastic bag from his pocket and tosses it into a nearby trash bin. He doesn’t want to see it. “Especially with the upcoming mission.”

“Oh my god, Luke! You had this since Christmas and that was almost a week ago and you thought that instead of coming to see me, you rather hide it thinking that it might distract me?!” Mark paced around the room, frustrated with his captain, “As your friend and brother, I have every right to worry about you.”

The doctor cast a glance over to the trash bin, “Do you know what is the Hanahaki disease?”

“I know.”

“Do you know about the other option of curing - “

“Yes, I do.”

Mark stops pacing and stares at him dead in the eye, “Then what’s stopping you?”

A broken laugh tumbles out of Luke’s mouth, his lips pulled into a grin.  He meets Mark’s gaze, unwavering as he answers, “Fear.”

Something is left unspoken and the answer is not enough. Luke doesn’t say it because the words is stuck in his throat and he feels that if he says it out loud, the petals won’t stop coming once it starts.

_To fucking believe that he’ll love me back._

A sharp knock on the door behind Luke brings the conversation to a screeching stop and Luke felt his blood turn to ice at the realization that they were not alone when the conversation started. The walls are not thick enough to block out all the noises coming from inside the rooms.

“Hey, Luke.” Jonathan calls from the other side of the door, unaware how hearing his voice brought a sigh of relief to Luke. “I heard from Flitch about the shouting. You okay?”

Luke wretches the door open, startling Delirious. He ignores how Delirious yelp in surprise when he grabbed his collar and heaved the man inside, casting one more look down both hallways before locking his door once more.

“Woah, I get that you’re angry at Kevin but don’t take it out on me.” Jonathan readjust his mask that had gone crooked, revealing his unexposed chin for a moment. He fixes that problem quickly before casting a curious glance at Gorillaphent who stands by his side with his arms crossed. “Why are you here?”

Mark gives him a look of disapproval, “I’ll talk to _you_ later about hiding Cartoonz’s condition from me- “

Delirious sputters, caught like deer in headlights.

“-but for now, we have to discuss about this.” He shifts his gaze back to Luke.

Luke’s lips are pulled into a scowl. He should have been careful to hide his condition. It was sloppy of him to dispose the petals where Mark could easily find it. “There is nothing for us to discuss. I’m well aware of the Hanahaki disease inside of me but I don’t need to be berated like a kid who doesn’t know better, alright? Just let a man suffer in silence, would you?”

His answer triggers something within Delirious as the next thing he knows he’s punched in the face before being held against the door by the masked man with hands curled tightly around the collar of his shirt. Mark lets out a shout of surprise, jumping into the fray to separate them but Jonathan’s grip remains strong on his shirt. The man prevails in close combat out of everyone with Luke being a close second but Delirious earns the rank to be number one for a reason.

“We’re fucking _afraid_ alright?!” He roared at Luke, gone the lisp in his voice when he stumbles on pronouncing words. “We’re afraid that one day its fucking too late and its irreversible for any of us to fix. I’m afraid that maybe you’re gone the next day and that maybe I could have done something but I didn’t. I’m not pushing you to admit your love to him or to have it surgically removed right away, just don’ _t_ fucking think of withering away, you fucking asshole.”

Jonathan lays his head on Luke’s shoulder as he releases his grip, “Don’t die on me yet, you fuck.”

Luke presses his lips together, forcing himself to remain silent when he feels his shoulder began to feel damp and how Jonathan’s hands shakes in his. His face throbs at the act of pressing his lips together, he was just lucky that was the only damage he sustained as Jonathan’s mean hook could land him in the infirmary with a concussion.

“I’ll think about it.” Luke says quietly, settling a hand on Delirious back before shifting his gaze over to Gorillaphent, “I just need time to think. I’ll talk to you on another time.”

The doctor gives a jerky nod, albeit reluctant with his answer but allows the topic to drop. Luke can see that he wants to persist with the topic but when his gaze swept over to Jonathan, they turned mournful.

In a distance, they hear a bell ring, indicating that its finally time for a shift change on base. Jonathan pushes Luke away, lifting up his mask slightly to wipe his tears away with a sniffle. His eyes are red and his voice warbles when he talks. “Sorry about that.”

“Its fine.” Luke straightens Jonathan’s uniform and gives him a small smile, “I have a lot of things on my mind to deal with.”

“You don’t have to deal with them alone.” Mark sighs.

“Don’t worry, I know when to reach out for help when needed.”

Mark hums in answer, a part of him unconvinced by Luke’s words. The man hid his affliction from him until he had to confront Luke with the evidence. The doctor wonders what else his captain hides from the others thinking he could carry the burden alone.

The bell rings once more for the final time before a new shift begins. Mark clicks his tongue knowing that he needs to leave very soon. Although reluctant to leave Luke and Jonathan alone, the resident doctor has no choice but to leave. Before he steps through the door, he settles a hand on Luke’s shoulder.

“My door is always open.” He tells Luke sincerely, “Don’t feel like a stranger.”

He gives Luke no time to answer as he makes it through the door and strides down the hallway. This leaves Jonathan and Luke alone in the room for a short moment of time before the former has to leave for training.

The air between them is slightly awkward, with both not knowing how to act after what happened earlier.

“Um…sorry for punching you.” Jonathan said, rubbing the back of his neck. His eyes flick to Luke’s cheek where the skin begins to turn red. He cringes at the sight and quickly cast his gaze away. “Yeah.”

Luke touched his cheek and grins, “Its fine. I’d punch myself too if I was in your position.”

This elicit a small laugh from Jonathan and just like that the awkward, tense atmosphere melts away leaving behind a feeling something akin to mutual understanding.

“Don’t die on me yet, asshole.” Jonathan punches his shoulder. “Not to this.”

Luke nods before escorting Jonathan out of his room. Just as he swings opens his door, he freezes when he sees Ryan standing there with wide eyes and one hand raised in the air, poised to knock on his door. The SPETSNAZ operator looks alarmed especially when he spots Delirious who greets him with a cheerful wave.

Jonathan pushes through the two men blocking the door, “I’m off before I’m called late for training. See you guys at dinner.”

He gives Luke a pat on the back and nods his head to Ryan. When his back is finally turned, the man begins whistling a tune that is only familiar to Luke.

Ryan watches Delirious leave, blinking several times. He turns to Luke with an anxious look, conflicted on whether he should stay to find out or leave. “Did I come at a wrong time?”

The tickle began in the middle of his chest, an annoyance at first as if he was tickled with a feather but it slowly evolved into a sharp pain that climbs further up his throat. Not being able to withstand the pain, Luke tries to cough as little as he can into his hand.

A slither of panic course through him when several petals almost slipped out of his clenched fist. He quickly tucks it all into his pocket while Ryan continues to look down the hall where Delirious left, silently thanking whatever force that was out there allowed him to do this right in front of the person of his affliction.

“So…” Ryan turns to Luke, “Got any spare time to challenge me at the pit?”

“Get your ass beaten again?” Luke winces when his voice came out hoarse, his throat feeling raw from the coughing.

Ryan seems tempt to cancel on him, “Ouch, still got that sore throat? Think you up for the challenge?”

“And have you on the top of the leader board, usurping my spot?” Luke shakes his head, “No way. Just give me a few minutes to pop a pill.”

The petals weigh heavy in his pocket despite its appearance. He does not want to risk letting any slip when he fights in hand to hand combat. He can’t risk it at all.

“Go on,” Ohmwrecker waves him away, leaning against the wall next to Luke’s bedroom with his arms crossed against his chest. This allows Luke some time to stuff the growing pile of petals somewhere else where he could properly dispose it without having someone snoop around the garbage bin. He made that mistake with Mark, he won’t afford to make the same mistake again.

* * *

 

“Something is bothering you,” Ryan said with a tilt of his head. His words are loud enough to be heard over the rumble of their aircraft but low enough to not rouse the others from their sleep.

Luke blinks and finds himself staring at bright green eyes. His manages to stifle a cough that climbs uncomfortably up his throat.

“Oh?” He says, tone low and husky. “What gives you that idea?”

Ryan wasn’t wrong. He had caught him staring at a distance with his mind focus on the flower that sit in the bottom of his trash bin back in base rather than the mission at hand. Delirious shifts by his side, alerting Luke that he is awake when he presses his shoulder against his as a sign of reassurance. He says nothing, pretending to sleep like the others but Luke can feel the weight of his gaze on him.

Ryan smirks and points to the bridge of his nose, a spot between his eyebrows with a gloved finger and smudges a bit of paint covering his face, “You do that crease thing when you get deep into thought.”

“Watching people, are you? You voyeur.” Luke teases the man with a grin.

The other sputters, eyes wide like dinner plates at the accusation. Luke presses a finger against his lips and nods his head to his sleeping men. A scowl appears on Ryan’s lips and it must had been a trick of the light but Luke thought he had seen a blush underneath all that camo paint Ryan had opted for rather than his usual bandana for the mission. His throat tickles uncomfortably.

He assures himself it was a trick of the light.

Ryan then used his boots to kick him in the shins, an act of retaliation for his part when he could not think of a better rebuttal. His shins ache slightly at the contact but the pain quickly went away as his body is used to the rough man handling. His bones had quickly grown strong over time after damage, each bone crack making him stronger.

Luke feels his shoulder shake and finds Jonathan stifling a laugh as the man pretends to sleep. He nudges his elbow into Jonathan side to shut him up but it only made the other laugh even harder. He resists the urge to roll his eyes, not wanting to out Jonathan’s façade to Ryan.

He turns his attention to the trap specialist seated opposite to him, “First time jitters? Don’t worry, it’ll be quick.”

Ryan scoffed, “You wish, bastard.”

“True, you’ve done this a million times.” he laughs.

“It’s just an observation. You make this face- “Ryan gestures to his own face and pulls a serious look, “-every time something bothers you like the mission in Switzerland when Delirious almost got shot when he took down four men and his comms were out. Your eyebrows scrunch up together which by the way is one way of getting worry lines.”

Although irate with the last comment, something clicks in Luke’s mind and the man can’t help but allow a smug grin to grace his face. He leans forward closer to Ryan, using his rifle to prop his hand up. “Worried about little ol’ me?”

“Wha- No!” Ryan denied, turning his attention to his mines and gun. He tries to preoccupy himself with his toys but the longer Luke continues to stare at him with that smug smile, the more distracted the man became, aware of being scrutinized. He ends up tossing his trap to the side and stare back at Luke with crossed arms, pouting like a child.

“Fine. I am worried,” He admits, “not only for you but for the rest of us as well. If you’re distracted -keep in mind that you’re _our_ captain- then it means that this mission is much more different from the others.”

It slipped out of his mind for a moment and Luke berates himself for the distraction. He should have been strategizing on their next plan of action despite having gone through this in the briefing room back at base. He and his team needed to be prepared for anything that might throw a wrench to their original plan.

Luke plays with the strap of his high-powered sniper rifle, “Although we have intel on our opponents moves, I still don’t see a motive for them to choose a ranch of all places where the closest city is hours away. It doesn’t sit well with me.”

“Think it’s another hostage situation?” Ryan questioned as he picks up his traps and begins fiddling with them.

“Doubtful. The ranch belongs to a civilian with no ties to the government and we confirmed that none of the residence are present on the ranch. That rules out Hostage situation.”

“ _That_ is suspicious.”

“You don’t say?” Luke snorts.

The earpiece in Luke’s ear cackles to life. “Hey Cartoonz, mind if you come to front? We got new intel from the guys back home.”

Luke perks up in his seat, recognizing Mark’s voice in his earpiece. Ryan looks at him, puzzled but says nothing as he continues to fiddle with his gadgets. The captain spares a glance at the SPETZNAS operator, coming to a conclusion that Gorillaphent contacted him on a private line before pressing a button on his earpiece to answer. “Roger that, I’m on my way.”

“So…” Ryan began eying Luke as the man unbuckles his seatbelts, “What’s up?”

“Got called up to the cockpit.” Luke answers, setting Delirious to lean on another side as the man ‘sleeps’. Jonathan looks peaceful even with his mask on, posture relaxed and carefree but Luke knows this is all merely a façade. He pinches the man in the side, hoping to elicit some kind of embarrassing response like a yelp or a squeal but instead got a slight twitch of in his fingers and nothing else.” We got more intel on the mission.”

Ryan nods in answer and goes off tinkering with his tools, callous fingers that harden over the constant wear and tear is gentle with the wires and switchboard but his gaze lingers on Luke as the man strides past his sleeping squadron. His strides are wide and the man stands tall with his chin raised high – fearless and brave which is befitting for the captain. Those sleeping remain oblivious to Luke’s presence but Ryan.

Luke swept his gaze upon his men, there are lines in everyone faces that only obtainable when you are a participant on the battlefield. Something in his heart aches at the sight but he pushes the feeling away, subduing it for the mean time and turns his attention on more important things; completing the mission. He climbs up the ladder leading to the cockpit and shuts the door behind him.

The two pilots merely spared a glance at Luke, nodding towards their captain as a show of respect before they turn their attention back to their task, speaking in low tones to those back in base that monitor their flight path. Mark stands not far from the duo, conversing with another soldier who held a notepad before him for the doctor to see.

His tone is controlled and tense which tips Luke off that something is wrong. He approaches them, slowly hearing their conversation become louder in his ears.

“-there is an eighty-five percent chance the package is still on the premises. If it’s there, orders are to investigate and secure the package.”

“This is a fool’s errand. You and I know how he’ll react to the news.” Mark hisses under his breath.

“I’m sorry,” The soldier’s stern tone melts away and he is genuine with his apology. He passes the notebook over to Mark who takes it unkindly, then pats his shoulder, “but orders are orders as much as I loathe to give you this.”

The man turns around, stopping momentarily when he almost runs into Luke. The man is surprised with his presence, having not heard the captain enter the room but hides his surprise well with a blink before giving the man a salute.

“Sir,” he said, bowing his head down slightly, “Excuse me.”

Luke side steps, letting the man through before directing his attention away to Mark who stands there clutching a notepad less than gentle to the cheap book. His posture is tense and rigged, ready to spring into action less than a split second and how his eyes remain glued to the writings of the notepad brings a foreboding feeling over to Luke.

“Hey,” Luke calls out as he stands before the doctor, leaning forward to take a slight peek at the writing. He doesn’t have to lean forward to look as the notebook is then shoved into his hands. Luke scans the page of hastily written words and numbers. The more he reads, the look in his gaze turns dark and thunderous.

“We received intel a large package has been transported to the premises just a few hours ago. We’re unsure what is in the package but its large enough to require a four-wheel truck to transport it.” Mark paces around the spot, hands twitching – a nervous tick the doctor picks up when his hands are left empty of a scalpel, pen or gun. “Ariel images suggest that it’s not a human trafficking operation as we did not detect any heat signatures within the truck but rather a smuggling operation. Its unconfirmed of _what_ they were transporting but it’s machinery.  Orders changed from recon to secure the objective. The amount of people present in the area is less than fifty men – around forty-five men at best.”

He stopped pacing, “The general wants you to secure and retrieve the package, whatever _it_ is.”

“This **bullshit**.” Luke throws the notepad to the ground, breathing heavily through his nose to stifle the anger growing within his chest. It starts off with a simple spark but as he reads the information given to him, the spark grows into a flame which if left uncheck would only set his blood alight. “I would have no complaints about usually doing missions like these but we received the intel late – you know I hate it when they do this fucking shit.”

He kicks at the note pad, watching it slide along the floor and wedge itself under a chair. Flying blind into enemy territory, regardless of how infamous he is on the battlefield, without a plan is suicidal. He may be deadly on his feet but bronze cannot beat brains if the enemy outsmarts him.

Information is the most powerful weapon in your arsenal, you use to your advantage.

Luke clicks his tongue when he feels the phantom pain shoot through his right eye. A stray metal shrapnel from an explosion nicked him there on a mission gone wrong when he dove into enemy territory with false intel – it was by pure dumb luck that he had not lost the vision in his right eye when he came crawling back to base.

“You and I both know that things like these happen unpredictably. It’s what we’re trained for despite how I hate it as well.” Gorilla said as he bends down to pick up the discarded notebook, muttering a slight apology to the communications member who had occupied the chair earlier, not knowing Luke had kicked the notepad underneath his seat.

“Nevertheless, ETA is one hour before reaching our destination. Its better now than never.” The doctor flattens a folded page and flicks his gaze to meet Luke’s, “What is your plan, Captain?”

His resolves harden, regardless if the information had come to him an hour before he and his team are to be deployed to their destination, he was at least given a grace period to organize his thoughts and plan their attack.

He pushes back his fears of losing someone on the mission, his ailment that could potentially lead him to an earlier grave if left uncheck and his early interaction with Ryan to the back of his mind, locked away until it was safe to drop his guard and let his thoughts run free without the threat of being killed in action.

“Pull up the board and scrap our original plan. We’re starting from scratch.” He orders.

“Understood, sir.”

* * *

 

The aircraft rumbles under his fingertips as the plane dives down to a lower altitude suitable for Luke and his team to jump in the darkness of the night while under any potential radar that might pick up their aircraft hovering over their destination.

From behind his googles he swept his gaze over to his team of five with him making up the fifth member. His team consist of Delirious, Gorilla, Ohmwrecker and Sattelizer, each man being specialized in a certain field. Although Sattelizer is technically a rookie being the newest addition to the team, he is able to access places that Delirious could not without the risk of getting shot at.

He watches as the group made their final preparations as they strap down to sky dive while double checking that they carried enough ammo and brought along their kit.

His earpiece cackled for a moment before Bryce McQuaid, one member of his teammate left behind to act as their eyes sky, voice filters through, “ _ETA is three minutes_.”

“You heard him, men!” Luke roars over the engine of the aircraft, “Get ready to jump on command!”

They lined up next to him into a single file line with Delirious taking the front. A single side glance from his brother is enough to spur Luke into opening the hatch. The air currents from outside tussles their clothes and hair but they all stood straight like a statue, unmoving and unforgiving.

“Jump!” Luke orders and they do, with Delirious running before taking a dive out of the flying aircraft followed by the others and Luke being the last to leave. A glance over his shoulder allows Luke to watch the aircraft fly into the clouds, disappearing like a ghost as it was designed to be by the technicians.

As he falls, he keeps a watchful eye on his falling team. The lines remain silent, not a single word being shared or uttered until they all have landed on the ground. He mentally counts down, one hand reaching for his parachute cord until he reaches a certain height. He meets his mark and pulls on the cord, jerking to a stop midway when the chute is deployed behind him before floating downwards when gravity takes hold.

Once his feet hit solid ground, he quickly discards his parachute and upholsters his gun that is strapped on his back. Delirious and Ohmwrecker were already taking point, using the mountainous terrain to their advantage to scope out the ranch using binoculars. Both men laid on their stomachs to keep their profile low while Sattlizer helps Gorillaphent remove his chute harness.

“Like the intel said, at least twenty men are outside,” Delirious muttered, lowering his binoculars while his gaze is trained on the ranch. His tone is laced with worry and his posture is tense. “Not sure how many are inside.”

“Probably thirty,” Ohmwreker pipes up from his spot next to the man, flipping over to hand Luke his binoculars. “I spot a possible entry point. West of the building near the ranches, security is lax but it’s possible. We got to be careful with the animals though. Spook one and its game over.”

Luke nods, taking the binoculars as he soak in the information given.  His fingers brushes Ohmrecker’s just briefly when he takes the item from him and feels the back of his throat itch. He ignores Gorillaphent’s gaze on him when he clears his throat, “As usual, I’ll take point outside and – “

In the distance, they hear an alarm go off and the ranch comes to life. They faintly hear men shout orders as the crowd of soldiers outside scramble with a handful taking shelter into the building whereas the rest pile into large armoured vehicles.

With a roar of the engine and the screech of the tires, most of the vehicles flee the scene. The truck they brought remains on the premises, indicating that the mysterious package has not been relocated to another undisclosed location.

“-or we’ll go in like planned.” Sattelizer says with a shrug but his fingers twitch to grasp the shotgun slung over his shoulder, “Alarm is tripped and I doubt that we can take them off guard now.”

Luke curses which can put a sailor to shame with his colourful vocabulary. With a scowl gracing his lips, he discards his parachute pack and returns the binoculars to Ohmwrecker who catches it easily. “Let’s start running.”

And they did.

Navigating the terrain was more less a chore, they were dropped in places that were more hazardous than this and that was merely training. The vegetation was not too thick to walk through but enough to provide cover and the slight incline was not difficult to overcome as they made their way towards their destination, silent but quick on their feet. They made sure to keep to the shadows, using the trees to their advantage to cover their presence from any possible snipers on top of the building or camera’s lining the premises of the ranch.

Once on the premises, all safety switches on their guns are switched off.

Luke looks to his team, “Keep your comms open and report immediately when you locate the package. Now get into position.”

They nodded and the team separates into two groups. Delirious stays with Luke knowing how well they both work together while Ohmwrecker goes with Gorillaphent and Sattelizer to the other side of the ranch.

While waiting for the other team to get into place, Bryce being their all-seeing eye joins in the call, “ _Ariel images and infra-red shows no one outside. Most of the heat signatures are from within. You are clear to engage_.”

“So far so good,” Delirious comments, looking through the sights on his rifle and takes the shot to a security camera not far from where they are.

Luke rolls his eyes, taking a shot at another camera, “Don’t jinx us.”

Over the comms, Sattelizer snorts in amusement. He tries to conceal his snort with a cough but his efforts were in vain as it was so painfully obvious that he found some humour in their situation.

“Oh c’mon,” Delirious teased, “No harm in small talks.”

“You do know I hate small talk, right?” Luke shoots back, once he is certain that the cameras on their side were shot down. There are no signs of activity outside or on the roof, crossing off the chance of an enemy sniper that Luke has to deal with.

“I’m not going to go ‘Hey Luke, how are the kids?’” Several snorts can be heard over the radio but Delirious ignores this and persists, “I know you hate topics like these but I can’t stand the silence.”

Before Luke can retort, Gorillaphent interjects. “ _Cameras are down on our side and we’re in position. Ready when you are._ ”

“Affirmative,” He replied and pulls out a small drone that they use on missions to recon the place to get a grasp of the numbers they are against and which part of the building is the package kept. Luke sometimes wince at the numbers when he is presented the total cost of the damage inflicted to the drones. One drone cost more than his body even if he sold his organs in the black-market. Imagine replacing five drones for each mission he and his team are deployed to.

Controlling the drone was simple as playing a remote-controlled race car. The only difference is that the drone cost more than your student loans. It wasn’t long until Luke and his team were able to count how many hostiles were on the premises before they were ready to breach the building.

It was painfully obvious that the enemy knew that they were there but in turn, Luke and his team knew where they are. The downside to this was that none of them were able to locate the package in time before their drones were destroyed.

“ _Twenty men_ ,” Gorillaphent reported, “ _Five are in the basement. Eight on the ground floor and seven on the first floor. Still no signs of the package_.”

“ _Probably somewhere on the ground floor or first floor_ ,” Ohmwrecker adds, “ _I swept the basement before my drone got shot. Nothing there but keep an eye out for traps, I spot several traps lining the doorways and windows on my way inside. Watch where you step._ ”

“Copy that, you all know the plan?” Luke asks.

A chorus of ‘affirmatives’ is heard through his ear piece.

“Get ready to breach.”

Both Delirious and Luke rush towards the building, with Luke covering him from a distance before Delirious does the same in return. Before they separate, Delirious touches Luke for a brief moment. They shared a glance which convey everything that is left unspoken, too private for anyone on the radio to hear but somehow both brothers in bond understood what was left unsaid. Luke pauses for a while then nods, gaze soft when he looks into Delirious blue eyes.

“See you on the other side.” Delirious said.

“Race you to the front.” Luke answers before grappling to the top of the building, below him he hears Delirious break down a door with his sledge hammer.

Luke vaults over the roof ledge and lands in a crouch. He stills for a moment, a hand on a handgun holstered to his thigh. Nothing moves on the rooftop and it was only him standing alone under the stars. A part of him feels nostalgia when he looks up to the heavens above, remembering a faint memory of his past.

_“Merry Christmas, Cartoonz.” Said Ohm softly, eyes soft and his smile kind and shy._

He snaps his eyes open – _when were they closed?_ – and chokes on a lungful of petals that clog his throat. The pain is worse than before with the feeling of sharp nails raking up his chest and into his throat. It does not help when he realizes his radio is left open for almost everyone on his team to hear.

Luke slaps a hand to muffle his hacking, he can hear the others call out in concern, but he can’t dismiss them or stop the coughs that shakes his body.

It seemed endless and he can’t _breathe_. He is coughing until he vomits up blood and crushed flower petals. His hands shake and his vision blurs for a moment. Too focused on the crushed flowers cradled in his hands, Luke remained oblivious to the threat looming behind him.

The door leading to the building swings open by a margin, allowing the enemy to slip the barrel of their gun through the opening and line up their shot towards Luke. The figure looks down through their red dot sights, finger slowly curling around the trigger and with a simple flick the gun goes off and the skyline behind Luke shatters into a million pieces.

* * *

 

“Cartoonz!!” Ryan hisses into his radio but hears nothing, his heart jumps at the thought of their fearless leader meeting his end when he hears a loud bang then radio silence. He forcefully shoves that idea out of his mind, he does not want to think of a close friend dead on the ground somewhere he can’t reach. He tries one more time, ignoring Gorillaphent who hisses at him to keep his tone low. “Luke!”

They hear gunshots in the distance and Ryan instinctively moves to Luke’s direction, knowing where Luke would be on the premises but Gorillaphent snags him by the back of his collar just in time before he sets off running and reigns him back.

“We have to continue the mission!” Gorillaphent urges Ryan inside the hole that Sattelizer had made. The rookie lingers at the breach, keeping an eye out for hostiles that might stumble upon them but occasionally letting his gaze stray over to the team doctor and trapper, ready to step between the two if needed.

“What about- “

Gorillaphent’s grip on his shoulder tightens, “He’ll live.” It sounds like he was telling this to reassure himself rather than Ryan,” That son of a bitch won’t die now.”

Bryce interjected, “ _I have visual on him. He’s still alive and kicking, guys. Keep your head on the mission._ ”

Hearing that brought some comfort but Ryan was hesitant to leave Luke to his own fate especially with the sudden harsh coughing fit they heard before silence, having left not much other options he has no choice but to follow the mission through. He ducked his head under, squeezing himself through the breach that Sattelizer had made and walks further into the building but the thought haunts him even as he takes down men who crosses their path.

It wasn’t easy to push away the worry, he had caught himself being distracted with the thought of Luke multiple times.

However, he was not the only one distracted.

The small tag team of three were able to comb thought a few rooms before meeting an unstoppable force once they round a corner that came in a form of a group of trained soldiers holding assault rifles. Mark, Mike and Ryan were able to dive out of the way when the barrage of bullets began but they were pinned to the spot. Doubling back means being pushed out of the building, losing their position in the fight and going forward means death.

They were stuck between a rock and a hard place.

“Where the fuck is this stupid ass package????” Sattelizer whines as he takes cover behind a wall from a hail of bullets coming from across the hallway. He hears shouting with a mixture of foreign languages he is not familiar with but he can tell that they weren’t please with their intrusion. “Why is this place so fucking huge?!? Who designed the house to be this big?!?”

“Shut it Satt,” Gorillaphent tells him, huddling close to the rookie and flinches when the doorframe next to him explode into splinters. “Now it not the time to complain!”

“ _Hang on guys!_ ” Bryce tells them through their headpiece. They hear the click clack of his fingers dancing on the keyboard and the soft mummers of the communications team discussing frantically in the background back at base. “ _I see Ohm rotating. Hang on for a bit. It won’t be long._ ”

“Finally,” Sattelizer breathes a sigh of relief and squeals in fright when a stray bullet hits too close for comfort. “I don’t know how long we’re gonna last until they push forward.”

“ _Trust Ohm, it’s not long now –_ “

An explosion from down the hallway shakes the building cuts Bryce short.

The hail of bullets raining on the rookie and field doctor comes to a complete shuttering stop. Satt peers down the hallway and breathes a sign of relief when Ryan casually steps over burnt bodies as if it was his normal Saturday evening. The man scans the bodies for anything helpful but scowls when his gaze catches nothing special on them. With a sigh, he turns his attention to Sattelizer who watches him with a mixture of admiration and horror.

“Sorry for the wait boys.” He tells them, pocketing one of his traps that had started the explosion. “I’ve cleared most of the rooms but the hallway leading to the stairs is heavily guarded. I spotted a few additional cameras and traps.”

“Yikes,” Sattelizer said.

“ _You don’t have to worry about that, I’ve cleared at least seven on the ground floor._ “Delirious says over the radio, his tone deadly serious and grave which is a huge flip of personality. Normally he would be the one joking, laughing as he guns down the enemy or if he’s stuck but never is he upset. His silence is unnerving.

Luke’s radio silence is starting to affect Delirious in a way that is threatening.

He grunts and they hear a round go off followed by a scream which is quickly silenced, “ _I’m going to rendezvous with you at the stairs. Better hurry before they bring the heavily arsenal. I think I spotted ammo for a mounted machine gun._ ”

All three men visibly grimace at the thought of trying to deal with the opponent behind such powerful firepower.

Sattelizer scrubs his face, spreading more soot all over his cheek. “Well fuck.”

“ _Say that again_ ,” Bryce mutters unhappily through the radio, sharing the sentiment.

* * *

 

His clothes feel warn and they stuck to his skin uncomfortably especially the area around his shoulder. It’s a clean shot with the bullet cutting straight through flesh and clothes. The pain is unbearable as he drops to the ground, landing on the bad shoulder to reach for his gun but he manages and fires at his killer. The slot between the door frame and metal door is small, giving Luke a small area to target and kill the other or die if he fails. The first shot that hit him was sloppy but he feels that the next one won’t be a miss.

He aims, both eyes open wide open and takes the shot.

The rifle used to kill him clatterers on the floor and his killer slumps forward, dead with a bullet hole between their eyes.

With the danger gone, Luke is able to take a breather. His body screams out in pain, his lungs feeling raw from the coughing session and his shoulder burning from the bullet wound. He should count himself lucky that the bullet does not shatter his clavicle and scapula otherwise using his rifle would be useless to him if he can’t hold it.

“Fuck,” He sat up and press a hand against the bleeding wound, further painting his hand dark red. “ _Fuck_.”

Despite how his body screams for him to stop moving, Luke knows that he should stop the bleeding with trauma bandages kept on him for situations like these. He kept one hand pressed against the bullet wound, applying pressure on the area before awkwardly peeling his sticky shirt away to survey the damage.

The bullet goes through his flesh, creating a point of entry and exit on his skin right above his clavicle. The wound requires some stitching when he returns to base but the wound is someone of his capacity is able to handle. Awkwardly, using one arm to do most of the work, Luke was able to grab the trauma bandages after ripping it off the package it came in and dress the wound.

He made sure to keep one eye trained at the stairway, ready to pull his gun on anyone that would climb the stairs to find him sitting there half naked. Halfway wrapping the wound, the building rocks with an explosion coming west from his location.

Luke looks west and cracks a grin knowing who is behind the blast, “Raise them hell.”

The sound of heavy footsteps heading towards him spurs Luke into action. He can’t stay in one spot for too long, especially since he had killed one of their own. This solider did not wander off alone to kill him, Luke knows the soldier’s team is not far behind once they realize their buddy is dead.

His body aches and his wound screams but he forces himself to collect his gun, grab whatever he could scavenge from the dead body and contact his team. He taps his ear piece, hearing radio silence when he wore it and speaks into it just as he goes through each pocket on the dead man, “Can anyone hear me?”

There is an immediate response and Luke hears Ryan’s voice first, “ _CARTOONZ!!_ ”

He jerks the ear piece away when his team began bombarding him with questions, in the background he can he the sound of gunfire. Luke groans, “Are you guys really going to do this while fighting?”

A pop went off, a sound from a shotgun then an explosion. Mike huffed in answer, “ _Excuse us for being worried about you! You went radio silent on us after coughing and then we heard the gun shots! You alright man?_ ”

“Got caught off guard, probably missed a camera.” Luke reports, “Got nicked in the shoulder but I’m fine. I still can aim and shoot my rifle. Any luck on your part?”

Mark answers instead, allowing Mike to cover for him as the man reloads to take another shot. “ _We’ll rendezvous with Delirious at the maintenance stairs. Progress is slow but it’s better than nothing. We cleared most of the rooms on the second floor but there are no signs of the package._ ”

“Probably on the ground floor,” Luke mutters to himself as he pockets trauma bandages he had manage to find and extra ammo for his handgun. He stands up and tilts his head – the footfalls are coming too close and he needs to relocate.

“ _Most likely_.” Jonathan comments in a soft voice, “ _I cleared only a portion of the place but I can’t go further alone. Too many traps and weak spots I might miss._ ”

Luke collects his gun and peers down the shattered skyline, wondering if he should make an attempt to rappel down into the large hallway. He sees no hostile enemies but it unnerves him at how quiet his part of the building is compared to where his team are.

“You guys are at the maintenance stairs?” He asked them.

Ryan answered instead after falling silent for some time, “ _Affirmative_.”

“I’ll rendezvous with you midway from where I’m from.” He quickly sets up his equipment when the voices become louder, originating from the stairway his opponent had come from. Luke readies himself for the jump, stepping over broken glass to stand at the edge of the window.

“ _Hey, Luke?_ ” Ryan calls out.

He pauses for a moment, heart beating rapidly against his chest when he singles out Ryan’s voice only out of everything. “Yeah?”

“ _Don’t die._ ”

“…Don’t worry babe, I’m not letting death take me yet.”

He jumps with a large smile spreading on his face when he heard Ryan squawk in response and the others offer a short laugh at the tease. His shoulder throbs when he aims down his sight as he hangs mid-air, sweeping the hallways with his rifle for any signs of life before taking out the cameras he spots.

The shouting above him become volatile just as his feet touch the floor, he hears a click and dives for cover. Just where he was standing is a small crater carved into the marble floor made by a shotgun shell. Luke does not look up, kept his attention trained forward and quickly heads towards the rendezvous point.

The house was once a beautiful home to a big family only to be destroyed by militia presence. He occasionally sees evidence of children form the occasional toys strewn across the floor and childish drawings that were framed in the hallway.  Luke feels that this place was once filled with warmth, the hallways filled with laughter but now he feels unnerved by the emptiness left behind.

An alarmed shout comes from his right followed by the loud shots of an assault rifle going off. He slides into the next room, using an arm to shield himself from a rain of glass and wood that falls on him when the bullets shatter the wall and picture frames behind him.

He clicked his tongue in annoyance and carefully peers over the edge, pointing his sights forward and one finger curled around the trigger. He does not see his assailant but kept his gun trained forward where he’ll assume his enemy is. A head pops out, just barely but Luke takes the shot then ducks back behind cover, not waiting to watch the body fall to the ground else he risks falling to the same fate.

He counts two soldiers, was once three but their buddy lays dead, and does a rotation when the group advances forward. Luke make sure to keep an eye out for cameras and traps that might litter the place when he skilfully navigates around, flanking his attackers while they assume he remains in one place.

“I’m not far from the rendezvous point.” Luke says into his earpiece, “What is your ETA?”

“ _ETA is one-_ “Mike replies but cuts off with a horrified scream that set’s Luke on edge. He fears the worse when he hears a mix of voices overlapping each other. He can only grasp a few words but everything is a mess in his ears.

“ _\- shot! I need –_ “

“ _\- move him. Keep him still! Mike you’re going to be alright I promise you –_ “

“ _Ohm focus on keeping them away!_ ”

“ _Where is Delirious? –_ “

“ _\- almost there!_ ”

The line cuts and Luke is left there in silence.

Suddenly a muscles arm wraps around his neck, stopping Luke in his tracks and instinctively grabs at the arm. In his struggle, it caused the earpiece in his ear to slip out and fall to the floor.

He catches a glimpse of silver in his peripheral vision – the blade glints under the light – and Luke lashes out. He managed to dig his elbow into his attacker’s gut using the moment to turn the tides as the two scuffled in a child’s nursery and pushed his assailant against a wall. Something breaks, a closet filled with clothes he notices as they both tumble to the ground, but it’s enough for Luke to grasp the hand holding the knife, preventing the other from stabbing him.

It seemed as it Luke had met his match when the both of them can’t do more but wiggle, hoping to gain an upper hand. The longer the fight goes, the tighter the arm around his neck becomes. Although the threat of being stabbed is unlikely, he’ll be dead if he passed out. Black spots began appearing in the corner of his vision and his strength is slowly whittling away due to the lack of oxygen.

He throws his head back, grinning when the arm around his neck slacken and he hears a satisfying crunch followed by a curse in another language. Without missing a heartbeat, he finally grabs the knife, plunges it into the oesophagus of his attacker and with a jerk, pulls away with blood coating the blade.

The solider gurgles and chokes, drowning in their own blood as they press their hands against the gaping wound on their neck. Blood began to seep through their fingers, too much and too fast for even a medical professional to handle without proper equipment. His gaze meets Luke’s for a split second before the man falls dead to the ground, body twitching then stills.

Luke stumbles back, gasping for breath before going back to collect his rifle and earpiece, the latter soaked in blood. He hopes that the commotion he made goes unnoticed, undermined by the amount of chaos his team is making on the other side of the building.

A crack from someone stepping on glass causes Luke to hide behind the door, abandoning the knife in favour of his handgun. He silenced his heavy breathing, patiently waiting behind the wooden door for the barrel of a gun to appear in his line of sights. He lies in wait like a predator waiting for its prey and pounces when he sees the man turn his back to Luke, not bothering to check his own corners.

A rookie mistake.

He slides up quietly behind the man, not pausing to let the other kneel down and check his fallen friend and clocks them on the head with the butt of his gun. Like a puppet being cut from their strings, the man crumbles to the floor unconscious.

Two different men, he notices, not the ones that were firing at him. The ones targeting him were still alive and probably combing the rooms to find him. Luke looks down both hallways before locking the door behind him.

He as a guest to entertain.

His cold gaze moves down to the unconscious figure on the floor and moves towards them with intention.

* * *

 

Reaching the rendezvous point was harder than it seems, being faced with multiple obstacles that can potentially lead them to their deaths at one wrong move. Progression was slow and Jonathan fears that they might miss Luke if they arrived late. He was not able to contact his captain after the man had closed his comms on his side, probably to prevent himself from being distracted while in combat.

“Cover me,” Ryan tells Mark who nods in answer and chucks a grenade down the hall. It goes off in a few seconds with a loud bang, shaking the walls and ceilings with its explosion. The gunfire ceases for a moment, fighters from both sides quickly regaining their footing in the battle before continuing to rain bullets.

Ryan cursed once he counts how many traps he had left, “Damnit. I’m almost out of traps.”

Mike ducks next to Ryan, taking shelter in a room that was once the leisure room.  “I can’t believe none of them learned to not try and flank us after losing two men.”

“Idiots probably,” Ryan answered with a shrug as he slips a third clip into his gun, “They’re not the ones in command and from how they work, probably mercs for hire.”

Mike tilt his head at Ryan, “Really? How can you tell?”

The specialist reached over to a dead body on his right and with a grunt, hauls the dead man closer to their group of four. Mike makes a disgusted noise, “Dude, what the fuck.”

Ryan ignores the comment as he tears off a patch that was sewn into the dead man’s shoulder, “Clothes.” He stated, showing Mike the patch. “Merc don’t have an official uniform to their name but they have a distinct logo. It pays off to keep an ear on the black market. You’ll know a few mercenary groups if you took the time to study.”

He shoots a look at Mike when he says the last part. The rookie grins sheepishly in return. He never pays attention during intel classes, finding them boring enough to lull him to sleep. If he was caught, Luke punishes Mike by adding a few rounds to his training routine. His muscles throb at the memory. It was not pleasant waking up early to crawl through cold wet mud in the early hours of morning while Luke yells at him under an umbrella.

At the look Ryan hummed in answer, smug. Mike laugh, leaving for the next room with explosive charges on his belt and a shotgun on his back.

“So…” Ryan began once Mike left, directing the conversation to Jonathan over the radio. “What’s the deal with Cartoonz?”

A pause before Jonathan replies, “What about it?”

“The coughing.” Ryan recounts how much of his traps were left, strategizing how much he can conserve while using each trap to its maximum potential, “Is he coming down with something? It’s been weeks since he had that nasty cough.”

Jonathan wants to sigh, being left alone to deal with this as Mark clearly does not want to interject on his part and save the SEAL operator from the pain. Talking about Luke’s condition was like walking on thin ice. Sometimes they dared to prod the subject but sometimes they don’t. Most of all, it doesn’t suit right to tell someone else without Luke knowing.

“I think he’s coming down with a cold.” Jonathan answers carefully, balancing on the balls of his heel and looks down the hallway. He sees no one in plain sight and takes the chance to run. He’s not far from the others now and is just two rooms away but the closer he goes, the more hostiles he faces. He does not point out the sigh that left Ryan’s lips seemingly relieved with the news but hides it carefully. “He already saw Gorilla for a prescription so it will go away in a few days.”

He wishes it was that simple. For the Hanahaki disease to disappear without a trace and not take root in Luke’s lungs, slowly killing him as the days went on. The amount of flower petals Luke coughs p is growing each day and it’s worrying. Luke thinks he’s clever when he hides the evidence but he forgets that Jonathan knows him well enough that he’ll try to pretend that things were aright when it’s not.

“ _I’m not far from the rendezvous point_.” Luke’s voice filters through their radio, cutting all conversations short with his sudden presence in the comms, “ _What is your ETA?_ ”

Mike responds faster than the others, “ _ETA is one-_ “

A loud bang and Mike screams out in pain. Jonathan jumps to his feet, heart beating against his chest. A scream from Mike means anything – shot, stabbed, burned – and the man could be dead for all he knows.

“ _A stray bullet hit me_ ,” The young man sobs into his radio, alive but not for long if the bullet had nicked an artery. “ _I’m dying, aren’t I?_ ”

“ _Satt is shot!_ ” Ryan yells over the comms and Jonathan hears the whimpers leaving Mike’s lips, probably withering in pain as Ryan puts pressure on the bullet wound. “ _I need you, Gorilla!_ ”

“ _Don’t move him! Keep him still!_ ” Mark ordered Ryan before turning to his attention to Mike.

“ _Mike, you’re going to be alright. I swear on my life._ ” Mark said in the calmest voice he sold muster but there is a tremble in his tone. Gunfire picks up, the fight renewed with a roar like a dying flame being fed with more kindle when one of the enemy realize one man is down. This puts the team at a disadvantage with one wounded. “ _Ohm focus on keeping them away_.”

“ _Roger!_ ” A scramble to reach for the gun before Jonathan hears shots coming from Ryan’s rifle.

“ _Where is delirious? Delirious, where are you?!_ ”

“I’m almost there!” He replied, ducking down behind cover when a small troupe of three past by him carrying a mounted gun. He follows in their shadows with his footsteps being drowned out by the chaos. None of them realize he’s behind them until a blast to the chest from a high-powered shotgun sends them flying.

Jonathan takes out four men camped at the bottom of the stairs, revealing his presence when he takes out the man holding the mounted gun. At the terrified scream leaving from the lips of the man that died before him, the group present had no time to react and pull out their guns in time before their chest is painted red.

The SEAL operator huffs, staring down at the bloodied mess. “Let’s hope Luke is doing better on his part.”

* * *

 

Luke picks at his fingernails, removing dried blood that had crusted over to the best as he can before dragging his gaze up to the man bound tightly to the chair.

“Tick tock, my friend. The longer you don’t answer, the longer it will be.” He tells the man.

“I don’t know, “The man sobs, body trembling and eyes wide with fear when their gaze meet. The scarred man looks worse for wear with half his tank top soaked in blood. Midway through the interrogation Luke had discarded his sticky shirt leaving him in a thin tank top, showing off rippling muscle and scars that decorate his skin. “I’m telling you the truth.”

Blood drip down the side of his mouth and how the man talks is awkward as if his tongue had become swollen. He flinches when Luke leans into his personal bubble, leaning back as he possibly can even if his hands and legs are bound to the chair he woke up in. Several fingernails had been torn off from his left hand and two fingers on his right hand were bent at impossible angles.

“You’re not telling me everything. You said a bomb but never the model. You tell me where it came from but not where it is _now_. “Luke’s voice is painfully sweet like how one talks to a beloved one, patient and understanding but as the man gaze up at the devil with a scar on his face, he knows it was all but a façade.

He trembles in his seat. “Please. No. God no.”

“Break or take?” Luke’s smile is sharp and filled with malice as he held up a pair of blood stained pliers, “What will it be?”

The man whimpers but says no more. Luke tilt his head at the sudden silence but shrugs it off as it’s not a problem. He grasped the man by the chin, holding tight when the man tries to pull away with his mouth shut. He doesn’t intent to take several teeth as the other thought he would.

“I wonder…” Luke begins, positioning the pliers over an eye. “If an eyeball goes pop or squish.”

The threat causes the man to blabber, a poor attempt at self-preservation but it sets his tongue waggling nevertheless, “It’s a biochemical bomb! It was set to detonate this Friday as an experiment to see how far it could reach but the date is pushed to today when we received intel of military intervention!!”

“Biochemical…” Luke mumbles, feeling light.

A biochemical weapon is worse than a bomb filled with chemicals, it can lead to an epidemic which may compromise the ecosystem and disrupt the balance of nature. Everyone around the world would not be safe if they contracted a mysterious disease and there are no physical barriers to prevent contamination.

“Where is it?!” He demanded.

“It’s moved to the basement!! That’s all I know!! Please stop hurting me!! I don’t know anything else.” The man dissolves into to sobs but Luke got what he wants. He abandons the pliers and heads for the door, fully intent to meet up with his team at the rendezvous point with new found information he recently obtained.

The man is still sobbing even as Luke collects his gun and shuts the door behind him, leaving the man alone with a dead body and the pain of torture running though his body.

Down the hall, a figure walks pass and fails to spot Luke in time before he falls to the ground dead with a deep cut over his throat, too late to call out a warning to his fellow partner in another room. Luke takes them down quickly and leaves behind a trail of dead bodies for anyone to find.

The sound of fighting dies middle of his interrogation with the man so hearing silence sets Luke on edge. Every breath, crack and scuffle makes him uncharacteristically trigger happy. The sound of heavy boots running towards him forces Luke to take position around the bend, using the element of surprise to take the threat out. He switches to his gun and counts down from three.

_Three._

The footsteps grow closer. He hearts shouting and screaming but they were not from his men. A round goes off and the fight picks up once more. He recognizes the sound coming from Sattelizer’s shotgun. His team is not far from where he is.

_Two._

More gunfire. He smells fire, blood and sweat that hangs in the air. The person is just around the corner, panting heavily as they move swiftly down the hallway.

_One._

Luke grabs the man by the vest, fingers digging into their thick clothes and slams them against the wall enough for them to drop the gun they held and presses his gun against the base of their back.

“FUCK!” The man under his arms cursed, a voice so familiar.

Luke blinks and violently recoils when he now notices that the man he had pinned against the wall is Ryan. The trap specialist looks worse for wear with a cut lip, dirt in his hair and soot all over his hands. His pupils were blown wide and his hands were shaking from the adrenaline, for a moment he does not see Luke standing before him but relaxes tremendously when he does.

Luke feels a lump in his throat and it does not go away.

“Cartoonz!” Ryan cried out, reaching to touch the captain but stops when he finally noticed the state of disarray Luke is in, his gaze moves to the bloodied bandages on his shoulder and a frown makes it way on Ryan’s face. “You were shot.”

“Only a graze but that’s not the point, I heard someone was shot.” Luke replied, “Where are the others? Delirious?”

“He’s down the hallway with the others and if Mike doesn’t get professional help soon….” Ryan trails away, letting his words fall short. He shakes his head. “He needs help.”

Before Ryan could turn around and take Luke to his team where he’ll likely be greeted with the sight of an injured Mike. As much as he wants to reunite with the others, he has more pressing matters to bring into light. Luke grabs him by the wrist preventing the man from leaving.

“Cartoonz!” Ohm tries to pull away, “We have to go!”

“Is your communicator working?” He asked.

Ryan blinks, face twisting into confusion. “Yeah?”

“Give it to me.”

Ryan complies and hands over his earpiece to Luke who abandons his broken one. “McQuaid?”

“ _Captain!_ ” Bryce cries out in relief, “ _What happen?? I couldn’t contact you through your ear piece._ ”

Luke cracks a small smile but it quickly turns into a frown, “Useless but now is not the time to talk. The package is a biochemical bomb set to detonate in an hour and as we speak it is counting down. I want a retrieval team for Satt pronto. I want that boy to come home safe.”

He can hear Bryce bark out an order to someone and feels a wave of relief that he was not met with any resistance in trying to extract the rest of his team out.

“ _But what about the bomb?_ ” Bryce questioned once he completed the task given.

“I’ll disarm it. If I don’t meet up at the extraction point after fifteen minutes, don’t wait for me. That’s an order McQuaid.” Luke turns off the communicator before the other can say a word and turns to Ryan. “You and Delirious cover for Gorilla. Take Satt to the extraction point and don’t wait for me if 15 minutes– “

Ryan shoves at him midway through his words and scowls, “What in the actual fuck do you think you’re doing??? You’re going to get yourself killed! You’re outnumbered and injured.”

“We’re going to die either way Ryan if I don’t get to the bomb in time!” Luke roars, pressing forward until he backs the man into a wall. He towers over the man but Ryan doesn’t let it bother him as he meets Luke’s gaze, head tilted up in defiance and green eyes blazing with fury just like the time he opposed Luke before.  “Us or me and you know which one I’ll choose. I don’t want to fucking lose anyone on my team ever again.”

“And kill yourself not sparing some time to think how we’ll respond?” Ryan shoots back, pressing his chest against Luke until their nose brush each other. “Does it ever occur to you that it might affect us if you’re the one coming home in a coffin?!”

Luke sucks in a breath once he realizes the close proximity between them. He chokes on his words and stares in horror when a flower petal slips past his lips right in front of Ohm. The other man sees this, his green eyes following the path of the petal that floats towards the ground. His face twist from anger to confusion and he looks at Luke for answers.

“Wha- “

The couching fit hits him like a truck, painful and unexpected and a mouthful of petals comes up. Luke had to use Ryan as support as he doubles over, coughing up flower petals covered in blood. They fell past his fingers and spill onto the floor, right in front of the last person he wants to know of his condition.

Ryan’s anger dissipated in an instant at the sight. His head swims with question; was this what Luke was trying to hide from the others? How did it happen? How is it possible to cough up flowers?

He stills his tongue, finding that asking right away as his captain vomits blood and flower all over his shoes is not something one should do right away. He places a hand over Luke’s back, rubbing in circles in hopes that he could at least sooth the coughs while keeping an eye out for anyone that might stumble upon them.

When the coughing fit subsides does Ryan open his mouth, “Christ. You alright, Luke?” he asked softly. “Does Gorilla know you’re coughing up flowers because I’m pretty sure that’s not normal.”

Luke does not meet his gaze as he wipes away the blood that trail down the side of his mouth and spits out the remaining flower petals that stuck to his tongue. As he does this, his mind race for answers. He doesn’t know what it means to cough up flowers. He doesn’t know what it means to have the Hanahaki disease.

_Ryan_ does not know.

Luke is not sure how to make of it.

“He knows,” He croaks, “Go to the extractions point with the others and if I don’t arrive in time, leave without me. Keep them safe Ryan and don’t turn back.”

There is silence on Ryan’s part, conflicted on whether to ignore orders and stay with his bleeding captain who clearly isn’t well or leave with the others. Luke never uses names on the battlefield unless its urgent. For him to start using his name, it’s terrifying because he never had gotten Luke to utter his name ever.

His morals are in conflict, Luke can tell and he knows which one Ryan will choose in the end. He has to snub the bud.

“ ** _That’s an order, Ryan.”_** He shoves Ryan down and points his rifle at an enemy that appears from a room with their weapon drawn. Ryan dives to the ground just as Luke pulls the trigger. His opponent does not fall dead as they duck back behind cover.

He turns to Ryan and screamed, “GO!”

Luke doesn’t wait to see if Ryan left, busy shooting on the hallway at a hostile enemy. He doesn’t see Ryan cast a look at the bloodied flowers on the petals and gather all of them up into his hands. He misses how the man cradle the flower for a moment, enchanted by its beauty before shoving it into his pocket and set his course to meet the rest of the team.

The enemy pops his head around the corner, intent on returning fire but Luke was quicker. A bullet between the eyes sends them falling backwards to the floor dead. Luke approach the body and begins going through the pockets for extra ammo that might be compatible for his rifle or handgun.

“McQuaid, walk me through this.”

Bryce gives a slight pause, “ _Do you think this is the right thing to do?_ ”

It’s not, he wants to answer because there is no right or wrong. What he does is what he thinks it should be. One man’s life in exchange for millions, he looks at the situation and makes a choice.

“What choice do I have left?” He tells to Bryce, “We don’t have the time.”

“ _…Understood sir_.” The blond man on the other line sounds apologetic, trying hard to not protest against his captain. As a soldier, he’ll carry out his mission for the innocent but as a friend, he wants to scream and kick until his throat feels raw because Luke deserves a better life for all he had done. He does not deserve to die alone saving everyone.

“ _Heat signatures show that five rooms down, you’ll likely either find the package or more soldiers. The ETA of the helicopter is ten minutes. You have 25 minutes all together to disarm the bomb and reach the extraction point…. or be left behind._ ”

Luke finds only two flashbangs and a clip for his handgun. Other than that, nothing useful at all. He heaves a sigh and stoop down to collect a mirror shard laying on the ground near his feet. He’ll find it useful later on before he engages in combat.

Satisfied with his find, he silently makes his way towards his destination, stopping a few times to get rid of any stragglers he meets on the way. So far, he had only taken out two stragglers that wandered alone through the hallways thinking that combing each room might force Luke to relocate further from the package.

He froze in his tracks when the familiar tickle in this throat begins to build and feel uncomfortable. He chokes on a breath and begins coughing to dislodge the lump in his throat. He squeezes his eyes shut when it feels that the flowers in his throat refuse to budge from its spot, praying for extra time before the flower consumes him. Bryce calls out in worry with too many questions but receive no answer.

A whole flower does not tumble from his lips but instead petals. A faint conversation coming from outside the room spoken in another language spurs Luke to move locations, all the while having flower petals fall from his lips and trail behind him, leaving a path for someone to follow.

Luke patiently wait around the corner, handgun and knife drawn but no one follows him, probably preoccupied by their conversation to hear his coughs. The voices die in the distance but Luke follows them, ducking into rooms and being careful to not get caught.

They lead him towards his destination, in his ear Bryce verbally support his hypothesis. The duo does not join the commotion but were deterred away with a shout from someone who clearly was in charge. Luke can tell this group of five are not mercenaries, they wore uniforms different from them and how they moved is calculated, similar to a snake recoiled before the strike.

They are trained professionals.

The duo moves away, going down another direction and away from the team of five. Luke cast a lingering look at the team of professional fighters, knowing that he’ll have to face them alone eventually, before going off after the stragglers.

They go out quietly somewhere where eyes and ears will miss. Luke pockets what’s useful to him and heaves a sigh. At the act, he coughs up more petals. His head spins and his vision darkens for a bit. The Hanahaki disease was getting worse with each interval growing short.

It was now or never.

It was time to face the music before his sickness gets to him first.

He leaves the bodies behind, hidden in a closet just in case other stragglers prowling the area might find his discovery. Luke angles a large mirror shard down the hallway, observing the five men that caught his attention earlier rush into a room before sealing it behind them with a metal barricade that only Satt or Delirious could penetrate with their equipment. However, with their lack of presence and Satt being momentarily out of commission, Luke is forced to find another way in without their help.

“Still no signs of the package,” he tells Bryce over the radio, “But I think I know where it is.”

“ _Affirmative, you’re right on top –_ “Bryce voice cuts off.

“McQuaid? McQuaid can you hear me?” No answer. An EMP must have been deployed to knock out his communication, leaving him to walk in blind. “Damnit.”

The earpiece is useless to him now, damage in a way that he can’t repair without a computer and tosses it to the side. With his contact cut from Bryce who was his eyes in the sky, all was left for Luke is to rely on his memory to find a way down to the basement where the staircase downwards is blocked.

There should be a way in, another staircase or a window. He froze, there was a laundry chute in the blueprints when he went over the layout of the house with Mark back on the plane. It should be big enough for him to slide down and gain access to the basement.

Slowly a plan falls into place when Luke casting a glance at the lights hanging above him. It wasn’t long until he figured out his next move. He stood up from his crouch position and heads to one of the circuit breakers that if found distributed throughout the building. He has one stack of c4 with a timer which he snagged from a soldier that decided to take a smoke break when he finished combing his side of the building.

If done right, his plan will fall along smoothly.

Luke sets the time to one minute, pressing the timer to go and begins counting down as he runs towards the chute. He makes one last check on his ammo before anything else. Nothing out of place, he squeezes himself into the chute, ready to jump as he counts down.

_0:03._

_0:02._

_0:01._

The building shakes as the C4 detonates. The lights went out, drowning everyone in darkness. With one deep breath, Luke slides down the chute with his gun drawn and goes for the strike, only relying on his senses to navigate the dark.

Confuse shouts and a mad scramble from the others in the room, Luke points his gun and takes the shot.

* * *

 

Mark to the best of his ability was able to stop the bleeding but without proper medical help, Mike would bleed out to death in their arms if the bullet in his stomach is not dug out and the damage are sutured with stiches.

Jonathan runs a hand through Mike’s hair, telling the man a story that causes Mike to laugh even though he is half drugged with morphine that was used to ease the pain in his gut as Mark and Jonathan attempt to carry him out. Ryan takes front making sure that they are met with little resistance as possible as they leave through a door that was demolished earlier by Delirious.

Once they reach the extraction point, it was only the waiting game left on their part with only one-minute remining before the helicopter comes and pick them up.

Ryan looks towards the ranch, unable to tear his gaze from the building. The gun fight might have died but sometimes he hears a round go off signalling that Luke is still fighting somewhere inside despite being shot and clearly unwell if he was coughing flowers –

Ryan reach into his breast pocket remembering about the flowers. He forgot about the petals he had snatched from the ground in the last minute before separating from Luke. He pulls them out, noting that they were still intact to be recognizable. They are soft to the touch, similar in texture when touching silk. He wonders how its biologically possible to grow a beautiful flower inside your lungs.

“Hey Gorilla,” he said to the Doctor who grunts in answer, preoccupied in keeping a drugged-up Mike from moving more than he should be. “…is it normal to be coughing up flowers?”

Mark froze in his work, unable to give a swift answer to Ryan when the man turns around holding to very familiar flower petals. The doctor studies Ryan’s face, seeing confusion and anxiety rather than fear or horror. Mike lifts his head and sucks in a breath when he sees the flowers. He mutters mournfully under his breath, knowing the implications. “The Hanahaki…”

The words are lost to Ryan whose attention is focused on Mark for giving an answer but the doctor pulls up a blank. He looks to Jonathan for help, hoping that the masked man could jump in with the answer. Jonathan looks back and they both share a look. No words are spoken between them.

_Does he know?_

_Should we tell him?_

Ryan narrows his eyes at them. “You both know something.” He stated, “But you’re not saying it.”

It was Jonathans who answers, “Do…you know what it means to cough up flowers?”

“Is that a normal thing?” Ryan asked.

Jonathan shakes his head, “It means you have the Hanahaki disease.”

“The what?”

“The Hanahaki disease is when you gain unrequited feelings for someone but the love is not returned. The symptoms of having the Hanahaki disease is coughing up flowers, the main cause of death if you have it.” Mike interjects, ignoring Mark who hisses at him to remain still. The rookie prop himself on his elbows to look at Ryan with wide eyes, bewildered that the older man does not know. “You literally _die_ from heartache if the feelings are not mutual or having the disease surgically removed.”

“And removing the flower in his lung means getting rid of all his emotions for the person.” Mark finishes, eyes sad when he looks at Ryan.

It confuses him when Jonathan and Mark looks at him like that. He had caught them staring at him for a few times with an expression that he cannot read. It bothers him but he does not ask because it only happens when he looks away and never when he talks to them.

The Hanahaki disease is only when you gain unrequited feelings for someone, Ryan scrambles for clues, anything that can solve this complicated puzzle.

The looks from Jonathan and Mark – the only two who knows Luke’s ailment.

The constant coughing.

_Keep them safe Ryan and don’t turn back_.

Luke looks at him as if for the final time, soaking up everything before he leaves and –

Ryan stumbles back, shocked at the revelation. Everything falls into place and it finally made sense. The revelation is startling, Ryan has no clue how to make of it when his heart leaps to his throat because Luke _loved him_ and he was the reason Luke is dying.

“That means Luke is….” He turns to the ranch, “We have to go back.”

He shouldn’t have left the man if the illness is killing him. The number of flowers he was coughing up was more than what the others has described which was just one handful but looking back to the memory with Luke hunched over, coughing up petals that falls on his boots, it was more than a handful.

He shouldn’t have left him alone. He should have been more persuasive.

He should have stayed.

Above them, they hear the hear the whoop of a helicopter wings above them. Jonathan look at the helicopter, hearing Bryce confirm that their transport out of there has arrived before turning to look at Ryan. The man is ready to bolt back to the ranch, at least be with Luke but the SEAL operative stops him with a hand on his shoulder.

“Delirious! We have to go back!” Ryan tries to wrestle out of Jonathan’s grip but both of them know its futile. “We have to go back!”

“We can’t!”

“So, we leave him to die?!” The trap specialist snaps back, tears pricking his eyes when he turned around to meet Jonathan’s gaze. “We’re leaving – “Friend? Lover? He doesn’t know. “Luke behind and we don’t fucking do that!”

Jonathan grab Ryan by the shoulder, almost shaking him with his strength. Ryan wince in pain when the masked man tightens his grip, his fingernails digging into his shoulder despite the protection of his clothes. “You think I don’t want to drop everything and go back? Luke is my friend, my **_brother_** and I want to go back there and save him, die by his side but I can’t! Not when he put his faith in me to keep you all safe!”

The mask slips down Jonathan’s face when the straps came loose from the amount of shaking he did. Ryan’s eyes widen in shock when behind the mask he sees tears streak down Jonathan’s face, eyes so very blue and pained. Ryan looks into the eyes of a broken man who wishes that he could disregard orders and go dive straight in just for Luke.

Just for him.

But he can’t.

“As your commanding captain – “Jonathan sobs, chokes on his words as the helicopter slowly descends.

Ryan whispers, “Don’t.”

The roar of the helicopter wings almost drowns them out.

“- in the absence of Cartoonz – “

He becomes louder because Luke isn’t dead and he shouldn’t pull rank on him when Luke isn’t _dead_ , “Don’t you fucking dare -”

“- I order you to get on the helicopter and get out of here.”

Ryan cries.

* * *

An hour has passed.

Jonathan sucked in a breath and spare a glance at his wrist watch.

One hour has passed since they left Luke behind.

The briefing table is quiet, lacking something and it was a someone. Ryan takes one corner of the room, leaning against the wall as he stared down at the floor in emptiness. Mark and Mike are absent from the table, with the former preoccupied in digging the bullet out of Mike’s stomach. News reached them that Mike is in stable condition and that the bullet has not nicked an artery but it might take some time before he could return on missions. Bryce is in his usual spot, speaking in hushed voices with the communications team on any updates on the biochemical bomb while shuffling through paperwork meant to be for Luke.

He runs a hand through his hair, his mask finally back on. It doesn’t feel right to sit at the front where Luke once sat in – everyone listens to him when his speaks, he was their pillar of strength – but commanding officers are meant to be positioned in the front, forcing Delirious to move over.

_“You have the quality to be a great leader, Delirious.”_ Luke’s voice echoes in his mind, _“Probably even better than me.”_

He doesn’t feel like one, not after making his first order to abandon his brother behind.

“Any updates on the bomb?” He asked Bryce.

The blond man stops shuffling through his paper and shakes his head, “No activity at all after a small explosion that knocked out the electric.”

Jonathan raise his head from the table, “Should we scout the place?”

The bomb hasn’t set off but there is a risk going back. They still have no clue who was left alive after the battle died off and hearing only radio silence on Luke’s end. The only way to find out what happen was to return to the scene of the crime.

“Your orders,” Bryce answered in return with a shrug of his shoulder.

There is a slither of hope that Luke might be alive. Breathing and kicking but has no ways of communication to the team. The chances are slim but it was better than nothing even if it means finding him dead.

At least there is closure on his part to know that Luke is found and will be buried on home soil.

He’ll be home soon.

“The mission is still the same,” Jonathan rise from his chair, “Secure the package and this time, we’ll find Cartoonz as well. Get a helicopter ready for a team of three. I want to us to move quick and fast – secure the perimeter before calling in backup. Bryce, you’ll be joining us in the mission.”

Bryce drops the paper in his hand, “What about command centre?”

“For the moment, I’ll assign Moo to command Centre. He’ll be our eyes in the sky. Go find him. You have five minutes before departure. Grab what you can bring and meet me at the hanger.”

With a nod, Bryce abandons his paperwork leaving behind a mess on the briefing table as he slips out the door to find Brock ‘Moo’ and prepare for the upcoming mission. This left Ryan and Jonathan alone in the briefing room, the atmosphere thick with tension.

Jonathan turns to Ryan who watches him in return, “Are you with me?”

It was an offer that Jonathan knows Ryan could not reject. The trap specialist takes it with a nod and follows him out of the room. He falls in line as they made their way to restock on supplies before hopping onto the helicopter that takes them back to the ranch.

Ryan looks west as the helicopter takes to the dark sky, “We’ll be coming for you soon.” He whispered under his breath. “And we’re all going home together.”

* * *

The ranch is silent, empty of life. A trail of smoke is seen from the other side of the ranch created by a small fire that has been put out by the sprinkler system. Several vehicles left behind were parked in front, untouched since they last saw it. Regardless of how peaceful it seems, it does not mean that they were not in imminent danger.

The group approached from the front gate that’s busted wide open rather than take the long path they had used to infiltrate the building. Bryce peers into his binoculars, scanning the windows for movement but sees nothing but darkness. He switched to night vision and sees nothing.

A gesture from his hand allows Jonathan to continue forth, rifle raised as the trio quickly covered the ground between the building and the gate. They were met with no resistance, no shout or alarm or a hail of bullets raining upon them.

The front door is left wide open, lessening the chance for Ryan to check if a trap had been rigged to explode if someone walks through and they stumbled upon a warzone rather than a home. Bodies litter the place as they venture deeper inside, no one was left alive or breathing aside from the three who stood in the middle of the aftermath. The air stank of blood, sweat and smoke but it does not deter them as they slowly comb the area.

“That son of a bitch is still alive,” Jonathan breaks the silence with one look to the mess, “This is his doing.”

“He did…all of this?” Ryan swept his gaze at the carnage seeing bullet holes in the walls, blood splattered everywhere and bullet casing scattered on the floor. One man did all this despite being at a big disadvantage. “Wow…”

Jonathan hums in answer, “Spread out. Maybe we’ll find Cartoonz faster this way if we cover more ground. Tell me if you find Cartoonz and the package. I want both of them found before sunrise.”

They shared a nod before going on their own, keeping in mind to still keep their guard up for stragglers that might escape Luke’s wrath. Bryce takes the second floor while Delirious takes the west part of the building.

What was left of the house is no more, a home to a family who were unfortunately forced out, is nothing but just a building. Almost everything, property and clothes is destroyed in their gun fight. There are some items that were miraculously untouched by the battle seen here and there but everything is damaged. He hopes that the family living on the ranch has the money to cover everything that was destroyed.

Ryan stop in his tracks when he spots an all familiar flower petal on the ground. He immediately recognize the petal and pulls one petal out of his pocket to make sure they were the same flower type.

It was.

The flower petals trail down a hallway and a few times Ryan had to double back when he loses the trail. It eventually leads him to the kitchen where he finds Luke seated on the floor, leaning his back against the counter as he downs a bottle of champagne he had manage to grab from the cabinet. A lit cigarette hangs from between his fingers, filling the air with smoke.

Between his legs is a big pile of flowers with petals that are similar to the ones Ryan held in his hand.

It was worrying to see.

A broken glass shard cracks under Ryan’s boot when he attempts to walk in and find he himself at the receiving end of a handgun. He raised his hand in surrender, showing Luke that he meant no harm. “Hey, I come in peace.”

Luke lowered the gun once he sees that it’s a friend rather than a foe and cracks a smile, “Hey. You guys came back.”

“We did.” Ryan settle himself beside Luke, feeling nostalgic for a moment. It was like during Christmas where it was only two of them sitting under the stars, shoulder pressed against each other as they enjoy a good drink and a smoke. “Couldn’t leave you behind.”

Luke passed over the champagne bottle he was drinking to Ryan. The trap specialist takes a swing after reading the label, recognizing it to be that pricy drink that cost more than five hundred dollars. The taste is familiar on his tongue, better than the beer they had during Christmas.

“I know about the Hanahaki disease,” Ryan begins once he passes the bottle back to Luke. The man does not choke but nods, looking resigned and tired knowing the topic will be brought up one way or another. “How it works, what are its symptoms.”

Ryan pulls out the petals he has and cradles them between his fingers. Luke observe this from the corner of his eyes.

“It took me time to figure out a lot of thing. My emotions were a mess and I didn’t know _how_ to feel. We both hated each other a long time ago. It took an ass whooping for us to reach that middle ground. I expected things to go on normally, no more fighting, no more resistance but rather some semblance of normality or what I think normal is.” Ryan drops the petals onto the floor between them, eyes casted somewhere else so he didn’t have to look Luke in the eyes.

“Yet…” he paused and takes a shaky breath. “Yet we became acquaintances and the next thing I knew, we’re friends.”

He laughs at a memory that cross his mind where he had shoved Luke into a mud puddle during training and that started a mud fight amongst the soldiers’ present. It took days to wash out the mud that was tracked inside by almost forty men. It gave those soldiers who were scheduled to clean that week a heart attack.

“I know how you feel for me and don’t go to Delirious or Gorilla about this because I figure it out by myself. They only confirmed it for me.”

A broken laugh leaves Luke’s lips, “Nothing can get past you huh? You don’t have to say you love me just to spare me the pain – “

Luke stopped to cough up more flowers much to Ryan’s fear. Petals and whole flowers that seemed too large to come out from his throat tumbled past his lips. He scrambled onto his knees, hacking as he does making his cough seemed more inflamed than it should be. It hurts and the taste from the champagne is gone, replaced by the metallic tang of his own blood on his tongue. He can’t breathe. He _can’t fucking breathe_.

White and purple mix with dark red.

Ryan is by Luke’s side, holding him tight with the fear that Luke will disappear if he lets go. “Fuck your stupid ass Hanahaki disease, I wasn’t finished saying my piece!”

“When you told me to leave, I refused because you had to go and be a hero which by the way is a dick move. I could punch you for that. I wanted to go back, almost defied Delirious if it weren’t for the circumstances. I would have gladly stayed with you, died with you. Why? Because I fucking care about your stupid ass.” He screamed at the dying man, feeling a lump in his throat because fate was a bitch to take Luke away before he has a say in it. “I had a lot of time to think while you’re gone and it fucking hurts alright? Every time I think of your stupid ass face, I feel my heart jump. When I think of the times we spent together, I wish there were more of those where we would just laugh and smile and joke. I don’t know what is love because the definition of love differs with everyone but I think I love you– “

Luke presses his lips against Ryan, cutting the speech short and the SPETSNAZ operator realized the coughing stopped. He makes a noise at the back of his throat, surprised with the action but slowly grows to be more comfortable with it.

The kiss is rough and desperate but it was _not_ bad and Ryan allows himself to melt under the touch, encircling his arms around Luke’s neck so he can deepen the kiss. It doesn’t matter that he tastes alcohol and blood on his lips, smells smoke and sweat on Luke’s skin because all that matter is how Luke is kissing him with a hand tangled in his hair. They only pulled apart when they needed air. They were breathless, gasping but so very happy and when they gaze connected, they shared a smile only reserved for a few.

Luke rubs a thumb over Ryan’s cheek, expression soft and loving. “Feelings mutual?”

Ryan laughs in response, almost crying and settles a soft kiss on his lips.

“Hmm as much as I am happy for you guys, “Jonathan’s voice filters through Ryan’s ear piece, “Can we please go home? You guys can fuck when I’m not in hearing range.”

Bryce exclaimed, “Delirious!”

“Hey! I don’t want to hear them fucking alright? It’s all cute and all when Ryan made that confession and kiss but we all know where the topic leads to in the end. There is always a place and time for that. _Now_ is not the time.”

“Agreed.” Brock chimes.

“Can’t you at least act apologetic for being a mega cockblock?”

Jonathan cackles making Luke and Ryan join in, laughing as well. “Hell no.”

Luke leans his head on Ryan’s shoulder, smiling so wide his mouth hurts. His beard tickles Ryan on the neck but he doesn’t push the man away, allowing his tired captain to laid his head down and rest because he earned it after doing all the hard work.

Through the kitchen window, the sun begins to rise above the horizon, marking it a new day. Light filters into the kitchen, landing on one intact flower laid next to Ryan’s and Luke’s intertwined hands.

 

 

 

 

Fin.

**Author's Note:**

> The flower Cartoonz is coughing up is a Helleborus. 
> 
> From what I researched:  
> The scientific name Helleborus derives from the Greek name for H. orientalis, ἑλλέβορος helléboros, from elein "to injure" and βορά borá "food". Many species are poisonous. Despite names such as "winter rose". "Christmas rose" and "Lenten rose", hellebores are not closely related to the rose family (Rosaceae).
> 
> In folklore; Several legends surround the hellebore; in witchcraft it is believed to have ties to summoning demons.
> 
> I did no justice in describing the flower correctly ;u; I might also missed some mistakes but I'll probably come back to that at a later date. I tried to the best of my ability to make sure I fixed all the problems. Sorry if scenes keep jumping aaaaaaaAAAAAAAa


End file.
